Department of Education scorecard puts the typical total debt for Otis undergraduate borrowers at $27,000 after graduation.īoth the donors and the school hope the debt relief will enable graduates to pursue their ambitions in the worlds of art and design, become leaders in the community and eventually pay it forward. He said students would get envelopes with more information on their way out of the ceremony. Hirschhorn explained that Otis had established two funds: One for full repayment of graduates' existing outstanding debt for loans certified by the college's financial aid office, and one to make charitable gifts to students graduating with similar educational loans secured outside of the college. "People are crying, it's making me cry," he said as he laughed and wiped his face. When he eventually returned to his speech, his voice began to waver. That's 285 people, according to the Los Angeles Times, which also says the college's previous largest gift was $10 million.Īs Hirschhorn broke the news, students cheered and leapt out of their seats for a lengthy standing ovation. Without specifying an amount, the school said in a statement that the donation from the Spiegel Family Fund is the largest in the college's history, and will "allow for the repayment of the outstanding student debt of students in the graduating Class of 2022." Bloomberg estimates the 31-year-old's current net worth to be about $5.05 billion. Spiegel took design classes at Otis during high school before matriculating to Stanford University, where he co-founded the social media company Snapchat in 2011 ( four years later, he became the world's youngest billionaire). They also received honorary doctorates at Sunday's ceremony, along with Queer Eye design expert Bobby Berk. That's thanks to a generous donation from commencement speakers - Evan Spiegel, the CEO of Snap Inc., and KORA Organics CEO Miranda Kerr, who have been married since 2017. We want to empower your imagination, your creativity and innovation."Īnd so, he announced, the school had one more gift for its soon-to-be-alums: It would pay off their outstanding debt. "We understand that this debt can compromise your future and limit your creative ambitions. "We know that for most of you and your families the shared burden of student debt is a heavy price that you paid for an exceptional Otis College education," he said.
Its president, Charles Hirschhorn, acknowledged from the podium that while the college experience offers many gifts, it also comes at a cost. Some 77% of the student body identifies as people of color, and over 90% receive financial aid, according to the Los Angeles nonprofit institution.
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